A Short Wait
The Garden Bakery was about a twenty-minute drive from Ben and Amy’s house. It wasn’t the preferred place Ben would have gotten paczki, that would have been Stanislaw’s Bakery and Deli which is closer to his office. Ben liked Stanislaw’s because the dough seemed more authentic, and even with the filling, reminded him of the versions his mom would make. Today, however, The Garden Bakery would satisfy Ben’s desire for paczki.
As they turned the corner, Ben could see the line out the door. At first he was perturbed they were arrived so late, but then he remembered that the inside of the bakery was small, and most of the time the line was out the door.
Amy turned into the parking lot of the strip mall, found a spot near the bakery, and Ben jumped out like a kid running to a candy store, getting in line before Amy closed and locked the car.
There wasn’t a need for Ben to go that fast as no one else was arriving, but Ben didn’t want to risk it.
As they claimed their spot in line, Ben peered through the windows that looked like they hadn’t been cleaned in about five years. In the front window was a myriad of nicknacks, from cookie jars to antique baking utensils. In the corner was a sifter that looked a lot like the one his mom used.
A sigh of relief came to Ben’s face as he looked to the racks of baked goods behind the counter, and he saw they still had the full contingent of paczki. He counted how many people were in front of him, noting ten people, so unless a few of them decided to stock up on dozens, Ben was confident he would be able to get a raspberry version and maybe two more.
Ben noticed the man in front of them. He was dressed in clothes that looked like they came right out of the hamper, and his hair looked like it hadn’t been washed in a few days. There was an anxiousness in the man’s demeanor, but Ben didn’t notice it right away.
Ben whispered to Amy, “See, he didn’t wait to shower or worry about what to wear.”
Amy sneered at Ben, patiently waiting for the line to move.
Even though Ben was preoccupied contemplating his order, wavering between different flavors in his head, even though, at the end of it all, he would end up getting the same ones he always did, he eventually noticed that the man kept looking at his watch.
“Guess he’s in a hurry, too,” Ben whispered to Amy.
Amy wasn’t paying attention to the man up until that moment, but even she took note of the wrinkled clothes and disheveled look.
She whispered to Ben with a smile, “I guess he wanted his paczki more than you did this morning,” hinting to Ben that he could have just driven himself to the bakery.
As the line kept moving, Amy and Ben were in the door, and the smell of fresh, baked goods filled Ben’s nose.
Ben inhaled deeply and smiled.